


missed time (and more)

by ried (riiiied)



Category: Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-17
Updated: 2020-03-17
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:53:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 900
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23185066
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/riiiied/pseuds/ried
Summary: With all the battles out of the way, Swaine and Marcassin go for a drink to properly catch up with each other.
Relationships: Jairo | Swaine & Lars | Marcassin
Comments: 5
Kudos: 16





	missed time (and more)

**Author's Note:**

> Me in the middle of my playthrough: I'm enjoying this game but idk if I'm gonna get fannish about it  
> Me after rewatching some scenes: these brothers are going to be the end of me send help
> 
> This was supposed to be a fill for a prompt elsewhere but it got longer than expected so figured I'd just post it standalone here.

"So… cheers?"

"Cheers."

Marcassin awkwardly lifted the large glass - Swaine had told him to pretend that it was one of those fancy chalices he'd have been given at fancy feasts, which just caused more confusion - but he still brought it up and clinked it against his brother's. Now that the threat of the world ending had passed, the two thought of taking some proper time to catch up with each other after all the years, and Marcassin had wanted to go "somewhere you'd usually spend time in", as he told Swaine. And while he wasn't going to take the head of a kingdom, his own little brother or not, to an actually seedy bar, this place was decent enough while still being a far cry from 'royal'.

Of course, the prince of Hamelin strolling into this plain tavern just like that would still cause a commotion, hence the hooded cloak. (Swaine himself wasn't exactly an unknown, with some people recognising him as 'that man who traveled with the saviour kid', but at least he looked like he belonged home around this parts. Not... unmistakably princely.) Not that it stopped the barmaid from eventually recognising him - Swaine had to pay her some good hush tip to stop her from blabbing to anyone else there. (Marcassin didn't exactly approve, but he stopped protesting when Swaine pointed out that it was the best way they'd be able to actually have their night out the 'commoner' way.)

"So. Tell me, what else did you do during the years you were gone, Gascon?"

Nobody else still called him that, and nowadays it felt less like his name and more like a relic of a life he wasn't exactly itching to come back to. But he was fine with his brother calling him that - some of his better childhood memories were with the two of them together, which he didn't mind being reminded of.

"Well, you've heard the gist of all of it. Spent some time learning to tinker with stuff I scavenged, caught a ship to the Summerlands, got by through doing some repair work… then turned to a life of petty theft."

"Ah." Marcassin looked down at his drink. Maybe that wasn't the best note he could've left off at, but that was just what happened. "I wasn't much better at that time either - I was passing unnecessary laws, neglecting my other duties, making life harder for everyone in the kingdom…"

"...Shadar sure did a number on us all, huh?"

The air grew quiet between them when the name was mentioned, and Swaine scrambled for something else to say. "Uhh, that… you know, there's something I got to tell you about those times."

His brother glanced up at him, his gaze inquisitive.

"Back then, I'd go around stealing random things, regardless of whether I needed them or not, and most of the time I'd just throw them away in the end anyway. But there was one time I absolutely refused to give up what I've stolen."

"And that was?"

"A picture of you and the letter of passage that would take me here."

Marcassin's eyes widened and his jaw tensed, but he stayed quiet.

"The moment I saw the picture, I was reminded of you and everything I've heard about what had been happening here and… I hadn't cared much about it before, but right then all I could think of was that I had to get to you and help you out of your rut. How? I didn't even have a plan, I just knew I had to."

"Gascon…"

"Wait, uh, that sounded like I was using you as an excuse to steal something, didn't it? Sorry, I didn't mean to -"

Marcassin shook his head. "No, it's all right. It shows that even when you were brokenhearted, you were still thinking of me… thank you. Meanwhile, I forgot all about our promise when I was brokenhearted…" His face fell, and even with the hood covering his head it wasn't hard to guess what kind of face he was making.

So much for switching to a better topic. "W-well, everyone's just affected differently, it's not your fault that happened to you. Besides, you did remember it before and after that, right? That's all I can ask for, really."

He wondered if he was just making things more awkward, but a smile started to spread on his brother's lips. "I'm glad, then."

Swaine looked at his little brother in front of him, the full-fledged sovereign of a mostly thriving kingdom despite one major hiccup in the middle of the road, and wondered just what else he was supposed to say. "I'm proud of you"? That’d sound rich coming from the runaway problem child, or make him sound like he was trying to sound like their father - and as mixed as his feelings on his old man was, he still knew he was in no place to even try to emulate the late emperor. "I wish I had been around more to help"? He decided for himself that it was better for him to leave, and even if he did stay around, would he really have done anything besides make more of a mess?

Before he managed to think of anything to say, Marcassin spoke up, "It's nice to have you back, Brother."

He could agree with that, at least. "Nice to see you again too."


End file.
